John Bell's Feta Chicken

1/4lb bacon, cut into 1/4inch pieces

5 cloves garlic, chopped coarsely

4 chicken breasts, boned, skinless, cut into strips (i think you could use whole pieces instead)

black pepper to taste

red pepper flakes to taste

juice of 1 lemon

1 cup white wine

8 oz feta cheese, crumbled

fry the bacon until crisp, drain. add garlic, chicken, pepper. brown lightly, until chicken is cooked.

drizzle lemon juice over chicken.

remove and keep warm.

add white wine, feta and stir. add chicken and bacon and allow to simmer for 10 minutes.

serve over fettucini or rice.

Veggie (or Chicken) Curry Rice Salad

10 cups cooked rice, cooled

1 cup chopped onion

2 bell peppers

1 cup slivered almonds

1 1/2 cups chopped celery

3 cups peas or edamame

other ingredients i have used:

3 cups (or more!) thinly sliced spinach

1 cup chopped parsley or cilantro

dressing;

5 TB apple cider vinegar

4 TB raw sugar or honey

2 tsp curry

2 1/2 tsp black pepper

1/4 cup soy sauce

1 cup olive oil

mix the dressing and toss into the salad. i have found that the quantities are really flexible, so mix what you like!

Spicy Oven-Fried Chicken

yum.
seriously. one of our new favorite meals.
i'm not one to sit over a hot pan of oil to fry my family up some good old fried chicken. i am, however, looking for good recipes using buttermilk, so when i came across this recipe i snagged it!
wow. really quite simple, and doesn't feel like it takes too long since you can soak the chicken the day before, letting all the flavors infuse the chicken.
we used our home canned hot pepper sauce, but you could use frank's hot, tabasco or any other hot sauce you like. and really, it doesn't end up being super hot - the kids could totally eat it. the chicken picks up only some of the heat, but gives amazing flavor.
i also liked that this uses meat on the bone with the skin on so that i could buy a whole cut up chicken which is quite a savings. since i have a little girl who loves to eat meat off the bone (actually requests chicken bones for dinner) this works great for us!
i baked this in my Pampered Chef bar pan, which i LOVE and use almost every single day! i was seriously licking the pan clean of all the drippings.
we enjoyed this with a green salad.
it was excellent the day after as a cold lunch!

here's the chicken, sitting in its marnade


simple basic spices


mixed together to make this lovely breading


the breaded chicken ready for oven-frying


the beautiful bar pan, right out of the oven. doesn't that chicken look amazing!


this stoneware is, in fact, why i started selling Pampered Chef products, so if you still don't have any stoneware, you should really consider! i bake everything from cookies to bacon, marinaded veggies to granola, pizza to rhubarb bars in this perfect pan! i use less oil, there aren't any toxins in this stone, and cleanup is a breeze!
click on the link to my website or give me a call!

Asian Noodle Salad with Toasted Sesame Dressing

i love cookusinterruptus.com
we tried this Asian Noodle Salad and it was a hit in our house.
the kids love noodles, and i loved the flexibility of using whatever veggies you have around. we tried it with broccoli and added chicken to make it a one dish meal, but really, you could use just about anything!

Sloppy Joes in a Bowl

Serves 10

2 cups dry brown basmati rice
2 cups clean water plus 4 tablespoons raw apple cider vinegar
2 cups stock
2 pounds grass-fed ground beef (or ground buffalo)
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, diced
3/4 cup filtered water
1 can tomato paste
2 teaspoons sea salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 tablespoons raw honey
garnishes: sliced olives, thinly sliced or diced onions, diced tomatoes, diced avocado, and/or homemade cultured dairy, chopped cilantro, shredded raw cheese

In a 2 to 3 quart pot, soak the rice in the 2 cups of water and raw apple cider vinegar overnight. The next day, add the 2 cups stock. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until all liquid is absorbed and grains are fluffy and tender. This will be about a half hour if the grains have soaked overnight. Remove from heat. Let stand for 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

While rice is cooking, put the ground beef in a 4 to 6 quart stock pot. Over medium heat, brown the beef. Add onions and garlic. Saute until soft. In a 4 cup measuring cup, whisk together: water, tomato paste, sea salt, pepper, olive oil, and honey. Add sauce mixture to meat. Cover and let simmer for 20 minutes.

Fill bowls with rice, then meat sauce, then desired garnishes.

Enjoy!

mac 'n ham 'n cheese

cook 8 oz noodles (i used brown rice macaroni noodles and no one knew the difference!)
set aside
melt 2TB butter in a saucepan.
add 1 cup milk, stirring constantly
slowly add 1-2 cups shredded cheddar, jack, asiago or other combo of cheeses
add noodles
1/2 cup diced ham (could also use sausage)
stir well
place in an oven proof pan
bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until top is crispy

Fiery Beef and Rice Noodle Salad

from the march 2010 issue of Cooking Light mag i found this recipe.
i couldn't leave it as is. i used romaine lettuce instead of iceberg
instead of habanero, i used a pablano pepper, but next time will use something a little hotter.
i used honey instead of sugar.
i wonder if cilantro would be as tasty as basil?

this was a light meal, but so very tasty! everyone loved it! it is the kind of recipe that makes me excited for summer, harvesting all these ingredients from our garden and enjoying such a refreshing meal in the heat of the evening.
ahhhhhhh